After reviewing the video, Fisheries and Oceans Canada officials told CBC News in an email it was "difficult to determine the specific sequence and context of what happened in this short video, other than the obvious contact of the whale's fluke with the vessel."

The department said marine animals inadvertently come into close proximity with people or vessels, but added the new regulations requires "even accidental contact" between a vessel or fishing gear and a marine mammal to be reported to DFO.

Taylor Hersh, a PhD candidate at Dalhousie University who studies sperm whales, said it's hard to say how frequently collisions between whales and boats occur.

Taylor Hersh said whales are curious and social, which might explain why the whale approached the boat. (CBC)

"It's a pretty difficult thing to quantify, likely because it's often underreported, so when they are happening, unless somebody gets a video or someone reports it or the whale watch operator reports it, we won't really know about it," she said.

Near the end of the video, chunks of the whale's skin can be seen flying through the air. Hersh said that's probably sloughed skin, which is skin that would normally come of the whale. She said the fact the boat was an inflatable one would have also minimized the chance of injury to the whale.

As to why the whale approached the boat, Hersh said that can likely be explained by the fact that whales are curious and social.